Insurance costs

[Bob Rooks]

Thanks Bob, but no help here. They don't do business in Texas.
hugs, Brandi

It was just to give you an idea of costs. I don't recommend the company at all.

Here is what a landscaper can and can't do (legally) in Washington state. Texas must have similar policies.
http://www.lni.wa.gov/TradesLicensing/PrevWage/files/Policies/LandscapeConstructionPolicy.pdf

 

[MarkV]

Keep in mind that it is not only business liability for the tractor that you need. You will also have to get business insurance for your truck and trailer plus you may need a DOT number displayed on the truck. I don't no about your area but in mine I would need a contractors license which is another whole mess to go through. It is awful hard to do a small business completely legal these days. I looked into doing the same thing at one time and it just wasn't going to pay off on a part time basis.

MarkV

 

[bindian]

Keep in mind that it is not only business liability for the tractor that you need. You will also have to get business insurance for your truck and trailer plus you may need a DOT number displayed on the truck. I don't no about your area but in mine I would need a contractors license which is another whole mess to go through. It is awful hard to do a small business completely legal these days. I looked into doing the same thing at one time and it just wasn't going to pay off on a part time basis.


MarkV

Thanks Mark. That is a subject I'm not going to bring up here. I got that figured out.
hugs, Brandi

 

[kootch88]

It is the insurance folks that have this industry and the country in their high pockets. Oh yeah...........and lawyers!
hugs, Brandi View attachment 272023

Since it appears the insurers are so corrupt, and the lawyers, why don't you take the risk yourself and post a bond? That way you won't have to deal with someone you obviously feel is ripping you off. I wouldn't want to deal with someone I felt is screwing me. I get a kick out of folks slamming the insurers yet the same people do not have the gonads to take responsibility on their own, and it is a viable option.

 

[meburdick]

I need to find a company willing to work up a composite policy. Majority of the work will be land clearing and stump removals, moving and leveling dirt. Oh yeah, don't forget mucking out koi ponds. (See attached photo) I'll need to specifly that pond digging will be done on ranches or farms and not in surburan areas. I heard from an online friend you can itemize it down by percent of each kind of work with the company he had.

Find a good local *agent* to work with. And, be sure that they have access to a variety of carriers. From there, you will be able to explore different companies with different options and find what is truly the best price.

Keep in mind that insurance premiums are part of the cost of operating the business and should be handled as such for tax time. Here, a good tax account is necessary.

The other part of this is that you may be able to get better rates on your home, auto, liability, etc with a business policy. So, spending in one area could end up bringing you savings in another. Be sure to evaluate all options as "total solutions" against one another.

Anyway, I do know before I dig anywhere unknown to me I can call 811 for utilities to come out and mark everything. Simple. I have done that twice and the next day the rep from the pipeline up the road showed up.

Be sure to understand the laws surrounding this. In CT, CBYD (Call Before You Dig) is required. And, it is the PROPERTY OWNER'S responsibility to make the call. Can you call? Maybe (don't know how those folks handle non-property owners making requests in your area). And, that would be good for yourself. But, if the responsibility lies with the property owner according to local laws, be sure that you put that in your contracts that THEY need to make the calls and YOU need to have an opportunity to review the outcome before starting any work.

Here's a general statement about insurance that you might find useful in your hunt... What the large print giveth, the fine print taketh away.

Be sure to READ and FULLY UNDERSTAND what is explicitly covered and not covered by your policy. More explicit coverage will likely have a higher premium.

 

[kootch88]

Just a general statement correction listed above. All print in an insurance policy is the same size, and it has been in almost every state for many, many years.

But the correct answer is yes, read your policy, question your agent and respond in writing or email on questions regarding your policy.

 

[meburdick]

Just a general statement correction listed above. All print in an insurance policy is the same size, and it has been in almost every state for many, many years.

But the correct answer is yes, read your policy, question your agent and respond in writing or email on questions regarding your policy.

Can I at least use "fine print" in its more colloquial sense then?

 

[kootch88]

Can I at least use "fine print" in its more colloquial sense then?

I know what you meant, it is just one of those threads where I feel like I am getting baashed because this is what I do for a living, and we are easy targets, just like lawyers. There are a lot of professionals out there that do a good job and a lot of consumers out there who make accusations and generalizations about the industry that are baloney, but everyone buys it for some reason.

Just like when buying a house or any other business transaction, educate yourself and deal with people who have a solid reputation and you won't have a problem. If you want to get garbage, go buy your insurance from a 1-800 number and best of luck to you. If you treat insurance as a commodity you will certainly be treated as a commidity on the back end. Just like tractors, if you go in and buy without educating yourself I would wager you will be getting a product that doesn't exactly fit your needs.

 

[Storm56]

Just a general statement correction listed above. All print in an insurance policy is the same size, and it has been in almost every state for many, many years.

But the correct answer is yes, read your policy, question your agent and respond in writing or email on questions regarding your policy.

You know Kootch that we are/were in an industry that many love to hate. I have stated this before on this forum: In my 22 years of owning an independent agency I have witnessed only a few times when I felt an insurer was unfair, on the other hand it was at least a weekly occurence where the insured was trying to get their deductible covered or attempting to get the company to pay for things that were outside of the contract covered or my favorite, trying to get everything bad that happened in the last 5 years covered under the loss.

Sadly those not working in the industry just have no clue how badly and often insurers are defrauded. Another sad fact is that many people think it is just fine to defraud an insurer. No doubt they have would have quite different opinions if someone was trying to defraud them! And of course this type is the first to complain about a high insurance rate. Do they not realize that the fraud they encourage and approve of factors into the rates?

I could go on but I would rather discuss tractors n stuff!!

 

[kootch88]

Everything you said above is true, but the change from agency based selling to 1-800 based selling has also really hurt the industry because there is no one other than a 1-800 number to call when there is a problem, and people have no relation to the 1-800 number and have no qualms about ripping it off. The industry has changed so much since I first started as a complex BI adjuster. Back then we estimated 30% of all injury claims were fraud in houston, TX. I wonder what the percentage is now? I know it is costing all of us a heck of a lot of money.

 

[meburdick]

I know what you meant, it is just one of those threads where I feel like I am getting baashed because this is what I do for a living, and we are easy targets, just like lawyers. There are a lot of professionals out there that do a good job and a lot of consumers out there who make accusations and generalizations about the industry that are baloney, but everyone buys it for some reason.

Just like when buying a house or any other business transaction, educate yourself and deal with people who have a solid reputation and you won't have a problem. If you want to get garbage, go buy your insurance from a 1-800 number and best of luck to you. If you treat insurance as a commodity you will certainly be treated as a commidity on the back end. Just like tractors, if you go in and buy without educating yourself I would wager you will be getting a product that doesn't exactly fit your needs.

Please know that I wasn't bashing. In fact, you could really say I was supporting the industry.

When a consumer goes out to buy any product or service, they look at the cost and make their decision. That's NOT the way to buy insurance. You have to understand what is explicitly included and what is explicitly excluded in the policy. Only then can YOU (the consumer) decide which policy offers the appropriate level of protection and at the right cost.

I'm sure you'd be happy to sell $100 policies all day long, but would be completely uncomfortable with people actually buying them (because they don't actually cover much). When the consumer understands what their dollars are buying them, they will make the right choice. And you will be able to know that they have the right policy as well.

 

[kootch88]

Please know that I wasn't bashing. In fact, you could really say I was supporting the industry.

When a consumer goes out to buy any product or service, they look at the cost and make their decision. That's NOT the way to buy insurance. You have to understand what is explicitly included and what is explicitly excluded in the policy. Only then can YOU (the consumer) decide which policy offers the appropriate level of protection and at the right cost.

I'm sure you'd be happy to sell $100 policies all day long, but would be completely uncomfortable with people actually buying them (because they don't actually cover much). When the consumer understands what their dollars are buying them, they will make the right choice. And you will be able to know that they have the right policy as well.

I've been doing this long enough to not bother selling to people who won't accept proper limits or buy the right policy for their needs, and this happens many, many times a month. I just do not need the hassle down the road. I also tell people who think we are trying to "rip them off" to take a hike. It is nice being your own boss at times, even if it costs you money.

 

[Storm56]

I've been doing this long enough to not bother selling to people who won't accept proper limits or buy the right policy for their needs, and this happens many, many times a month. I just do not need the hassle down the road. I also tell people who think we are trying to "rip them off" to take a hike. It is nice being your own boss at times, even if it costs you money.

Not selling to the types that are not interested in buying the proper coverage actually saves you money in the long run because they will be the first to cry foul when something goes amiss, and it will...

 

[bindian]

In recent emails, I had been given a cost of $750 for my tractor liability insurance in my new start up business....Big RED Beast Excavators. Now the Farm Bureau agent just sent me quote of $2806. My question is what insurance do Y'all have and how much do you pay for digging in the dirt?
hugs, Brandi

Please reread my original post, above. I am asking folks WHO are in the dirt digging business where they get coverage. I am not asking for opinions from others who do not do this business. I appreciate all the comments, but there are too many to respond to.
Thanks, Brandi

 

[meburdick]

Please reread my original post, above. I am asking folks WHO are in the dirt digging business where they get coverage. I am not asking for opinions from others who do not do this business. I appreciate all the comments, but there are too many to respond to.

Brandi,

While I understand how you're trying to gather information (from those that are consumers of the product), unless someone sends you a copy of their policy to review, getting input from them on how much they pay doesn't help you. This sort of item isn't a "black box" commodity that you can buy at any retail chain. Policies are individualized and customized to suit the needs of the consumer.

What everyone here is trying to do is help you understand *why* you may be getting price quotes that are so different from one another from those two entities and you'll be empowered to work from there.

 

[kootch88]

Everyone wants it simple enough to explain in one sentence. No wonder newspapers are going out of business.

 

[Storm56]

Let me see if I have this correct...OP claims to be starting a landscaping business, gets a quote for about $750, then is upset when it comes back at $2806....and her business name is Big Red Beast Excavators......

And she wonders why......

And then when people that worked in the industry try very nicely to explain it, she thinks we are off the main post topic....she wants feedback from people who are in the "business"....

 

[meburdick]

Let me see if I have this correct...OP claims to be starting a landscaping business, gets a quote for about $750, then is upset when it comes back at $2806....

I thought it was more a case of getting two different quotes from two different "vendors" and having them be so far apart. But, it isn't completely clear which of the two scenarios is accurate.

And then when people that worked in the industry try very nicely to explain it, she thinks we are off the main post topic....she wants feedback from people who are in the "business"....

I can follow her wanting to get feedback from people in the excavation business (as opposed to being in the insurance business), but what she should REALLY be concerned about is actually understanding what ANY quoted policy covers her for and then understanding what COVERED PERILS others in the excavation business carry.

As a well-informed consumer of insurance [I carry equipment coverage on my tractor that includes use on my property as well as in transport, auto, general liability, umbrella liability, homeowner's (with specific items riders), and life], I know that it isn't about what you pay as much as it is about what you pay for.

Your position as an "industry insider" allow you to provide an even deeper understanding of that.

 

[kootch88]

So a great way to educate yourself is go to a plummer to explain complex insurance policies. That way you will get 100% opinion and insufficient information so you can make a really stupid decision. I know when I have a medical question I would always ask my bodyshop first, because they always know exactly what I will need.

If I sound sarcastic, maybe you can understand why. If you want real information, go ask someone who knows what they are talking about, not the plummer or doctor about insurance. Trying to get an idea of cost from anyone outside your zipcode, especially Texas, since they have unique insurance laws is a waste of time.

 

[lilranch2001]

Let me see if I have this correct...OP claims to be starting a landscaping business, gets a quote for about $750, then is upset when it comes back at $2806....and her business name is Big Red Beast Excavators......

And she wonders why......


And then when people that worked in the industry try very nicely to explain it, she thinks we are off the main post topic....she wants feedback from people who are in the "business"....

I was a bit curious about that as well
:confused2: